My thoughts:
1. Get a book or two (or three or four) about technical theater. (Technical Theater for Nontechnical People by Campbell would be a good start to get a broad picture. Then, get some of the Stagecraft Handbooks.)
2. Get organized – figure out what you know and what you don’t know (and remember that there will be many things that fall into the category of “what you don’t know you don’t know”). The divisions on the CB board are a good place to start, but you’ll also need rigging, costumes, and makeup.
Safety is an issue and is embedded in each of the disciplines.
3. Seek help – maybe the students know what they are doing. There may be other teachers in the school that can help, or teachers in the lower schools. (There is the issue of compensation and contracts, but there should be some way to manage that.) Also, if he’s doing the technical side, there must be someone doing the acting side and/or directing. Maybe that person has technical experience.
4. Look around and get familiar with the place. Find out what the equipment is, how it works, when the last time it was maintained, are there manuals,….
5. The light at the end of the tunnel may be a locomotive. Ninety percent of everything is below the water.
Joe